Cambodia vs. Guatemala for Manufacturing For U.S. companies making labor-intensive products and looking to exit China, Cambodia and Guatemala come up repeatedly as lower-cost alternatives. I am bullish on Guatemala, but cautious on Cambodia. This is not because Cambodia cannot manufacture. It can. The issue is control. Cambodia’s risk profile is harder to manage and
China NNN Agreements fail when they only block disclosure, ignore WeChat/CAD files, name the wrong company, or require enforcement you cannot afford. This blog post explains when you need an NDA vs an NNN agreement, common China traps (language, company chop, Hong Kong clauses), and what to send for a fast review.
After the Wall Street Journal Calls: Why Tariff Reduction Is Not a One-Hour Fix When the Wall Street Journal profiled our firm’s approach to tariff reduction, we expected calls. What we did not expect was how many companies would read “aboveboard playbook” and assume it meant we could diagnose their tariff exposure in an hour
Think labeling imports as “samples” avoids tariffs? Think again. Learn the strict CBP rules for duty-free samples, HTS 9811.00.60 requirements, and how to use TIBs or Carnets safely in 2025.
Tariffs Are Now a Fraud Risk: How Importers Can Avoid CBP and DOJ Trouble One internal message can turn a tariff problem into a fraud problem. Not because a single email triggers an investigation by itself, but because once the government starts asking questions, the record your team created under pressure becomes the story the
China Employment Termination Today: Reinstatement Risk and What Employers Should Do A Supreme People’s Court judicial interpretation effective September 1, 2025, has shifted the risk profile of China employment termination disputes. Employers that have treated unlawful termination claims as a predictable, mostly financial exposure should reassess that assumption, because it is now harder to avoid
Global IP Protection Strategy FAQ My blog post yesterday, Global IP Protection: Why You Need a Strategy, Not Just an Application generated a lot of questions. In an attempt to answer those we received (and those we anticipate receiving), I give you the below FAQs. If you are manufacturing abroad, expanding internationally, or selling through
Global IP Protection Strategy When brands think about protecting their intellectual property abroad, they often start with the most visible tasks: filing a trademark application, registering a patent, or sending a takedown notice to deal with a specific infringement. Those steps matter. On their own, though, they are tactical steps. They can be necessary, but
Why International Arbitration Is the Cornerstone of Modern Global Risk Management The Global Business Reality: Cross-Border Disputes Destroy Deals Imagine a multinational manufacturer that spends almost five years caught in a foreign court system trying to recover a 2.5 million-dollar debt. By the time the case has crawled through local procedure and appeals, the company
High End Manufacturing Integrators: The Pros and Cons for Companies That Cannot Afford Mistakes Why Companies Are Turning to Manufacturing Integrators Companies that build sophisticated products tend to face the same pattern of problems. Overseas factories offer attractive pricing, but their incentives rarely match yours. Their priority is volume and machine utilization. Your priorities are
